It's not just us who rely on it -- lots of people do -- so I don't
think it's just a case of amateur lawyering. The basic rationale for
Bridgeman v. Corel is in Feist v. Rural (Bridgeman is an application
of the "slavish copying" issue to artwork rather than text, which was
the subject of Feist), which is a US Supreme Court case and on much
firmer grounds. The idea that sheer manpower, but no transformative
effort, creates new copyright claims is fairly strong; the exact
nuances come down to how this translates in the case of, say, a
photograph of a painting (which is the exact issue in Bridgeman v.
Corel), or the more complicated cases like a photograph of a mural, a
stained-glass window, or a collage.
But it is wishful thinking to assume it applies outside the US. It is
an interpretation of US copyright law and has no strict international
implications in and of itself. The US approach to copyrights is in no
means the only conclusion or form of reasoning possible.
FF
On 4/11/06, Jimmy Wales <jwales(a)wikia.com> wrote:
Mark Wagner wrote:
I am not a lawyer, but IIRC, Bridgeman v Corel
only applies to
two-dimensional copies of two-dimensional works (though it may apply
to three-dimensional copies of three-dimensional works). The basis of
it is that a "slavishly accurate" copy of a work involves no creative
effort, and so cannot establish a copyright separate from that of the
original. Photographing a 3D work involves creative effort, in the
choice of lighting and camera angle.
Bridgeman v. Corel was a district court case, never litigated at the
appeals court level, and therefore is not a strong precedent. It is, as
far as I have been able to determine, a fairly unusual result not likely
to be followed by other courts.
Therefore, relying on Bridgeman v. Corel for anything is likely wishful
thinking.
Images created and published in the US that are
public domain under
Bridgeman v Corel are probably public domain everywhere else, as well.
I very much doubt this.
--Jimbo
--
#######################################################################
# Office: 1-727-231-0101 | Free Culture and Free Knowledge #
#
http://www.wikipedia.org | Building a free world #
#######################################################################
_______________________________________________
WikiEN-l mailing list
WikiEN-l(a)Wikipedia.org
To unsubscribe from this mailing list, visit:
http://mail.wikipedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikien-l